Archive for November, 2011

Gloomy days ahead, so here’s a post that fits the mood I’m currently rolling with at the moment. East Ash were a post-punk band from Columbia, Missouri, released on C’est La Morte records (read more here). This is the first of two albums, released in 1990 on LP and CD. Would be interested in hearing the second album, if anyone happens to have it.

The vocalist here reminds me an awful lot of David Eugene Edwards of 16 Horsepower/Wovenhand fame. Musically, it’s a hybrid of early Modern English, Joy Division, & the shimmer of The Joshua Tree (mostly heard in “A Flood”), with a manic disco edge thrown in for good measure. Dark, gloomy, and driving, just the way I like it. This one definitely should not be missed!

It’s almost time for Thanksgiving here in the States, and I’ve got quite a few things to be thankful for. Most pressingly, I’m thankful for this generous donation of a newly acquired, re-ripped, and cleaned up version of one of the greatest French gems in existence. As a huge champion of the French coldwave sound, you guys should know that this is no small statement. Fans of the genre should already be familiar with these two gloomy pieces of pefection, as this 1986 single been re-posted several times over the years, but not with such loving attention to quality and fidelity.

Here’s a rare post-punk single from Germany, whose release date is unknown. Believe me, the single passed through my hands briefly, and I couldn’t find a date on it to save my life! If i had to guess, I would say 1986, but don’t quote me on that. This is their only release, on an otherwise unknown record label. A mysterious record, through and through! If anyone out there has any more info, feel free to let me know!

Otherwise, some nice cold sounds here that should feel right at home for fans of the genre. Really melodic and understated tracks, with just enough punch to make them interesting. I prefer the flip-side, but your mileage may vary. See what the fuss is all about:

Feeling fiesty this Friday, so here’s a SECOND post for your weekend pleasure. It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything minimal synth related, and I’ve had this single kicking around for years, so it’s about damn time I posted it. So, synth fans, this one is for you!

Here we have a often-coveted 7” from Spain, released in 1982 on Hispavox, who had tie-ins with EMI and are still around to date. This is the band’s only release, pure minimal bliss. The A-side is all over the map, shifting in and out of tempos and featuring some rather impressive operatic female vocals, as the title might suggest. The B-side is the standout for me, a really pretty pseudo-instrumental (minimal vox) with washes of synth (and what sounds like, but likely is not a theremin). Both tracks are worth your attention, but don’t let me tell you twice.

Here’s a great (and pleasantly affordable) compilation chock full of post-punk and coldwave sounds from C’est La Morte. I believe there are five editions in this series, this being the only one I own. The rest seem promising as well, judging from the inclusion of Handful of Snowdrops, Bill Pritchard, Heavenly Bodies, Beautiful Green Pea Boat, Clair Obscur, etc. You can get volume 4 here.

The story of these compilations dates back to C’est La Morte owner Woody Dumas, who used to have a radio program called Doctor Death, which specialized in cold/gothic sounds. The first edition was the very first release on the fledgling Louisiana label, and has several great (and in some cases, exclusive) tracks from some of my favorite bands of the era, including Breathless, Room Nine, and Lung Overcoat. It’s also worthy to mention that the version of Throwing Muses’ “Fish” differs from the Lonely Is an Eyesore compilation. A few unknowns for me here too, my favorite of that lot being the ethereal/cold contribution from Pat on the Back. M-1 Alternative also appears throughout the series, and contribute a great track here.

I really do love compilations like these, where every track fits together and is thoroughly enjoyable (also see the amazing L’Appel De La Muse series). All in all, you get a pretty good idea of what you can expect by simply looking at the cover. Not to be missed!

Here’s one I’ve had in my possession for some time now, donated by a friend a few years back. It’s been a while since I’ve thought about it, but after recovering from a major harddrive failure, I’ve since revisited this record with fond appreciation.

What we have here is a female fronted goth band from San Francisco, very much akin to the likes of Sunshine Blind, another US-based band who followed shortly after. This is their only album, released in 1990 on Popular Metaphysics, which was branded by MCA records, whose primary interest was metal at the time. Chances are that the band caught the label’s attention but didn’t perform as expected, as there are many cheap copies of this CD floating out there (and a wikipedia page!) but no audio to back it up. I’ve seen some requests for it out there in the ether, so about time this album is heard in full.

I must warn you: the second half of this album gets a little too Tori Amos-esque for my taste, but the first half just slays. Hard hitting tracks like “One Last Kiss” and “Holding Heaven’s Hand” should feel right at home for any late 80s darkwave collection, and are worth the price of admission alone. I feel like this album would have been more commercially successful if it were released three or four years later, when the alternative explosion was well underway with darker undercurrents. Don’t let the A word scare you off though, as you may find yourself surprised by the strength of the first few tracks.

Sorry for the delay here, folks. Still working on finishing up our new apartment, and haven’t been able to set up the ol’ turntable yet. However, I have a few tapes I’ve ripped recently so I’ll try to keep things going as I can. Here we have some excellent German guitar sounds here, from 1992. Very rough around the edges (the tape is actually a demo from the band, and seems to be the only thing they ever released), but there’s quite a bit of promise to be heard here, if only they had stuck around a bit longer and made some official recordings.

Don’t let the date fool you. Schadstoff very much falls into the vein of the mid-80s post-punk greats such as The Chameleons, Lowlife, Snake Corps, The Names, etc. It’s certainly raw and noticiably underdeveloped given the circumstances, but I have a feeling you guys are going to dig it, regardless. Here’s the info:

About

Systems of Romance was created in mid-2007 to serve as a dumping grounds for all great things coldwave, minimal synth, post-punk, synthpunk, industrial, synthpop, and various other combinations of these styles. Feel free to make requests, noodle around, and discuss all you like...

Otherwise, this blog is dedicated to showcasing material that has long since been out of print. If you are aware of any of these items being readily available from the artist or label, or take issue with these tracks being uploaded, please let me know so I can amend the post or remove the links.